〈 Chapter 2, Part 1, Episode 1 〉
When I came to, I was inside magma.
“What the heck is this opening?”
There was no scene of being carted off in a prisoner convoy or some world-renowned scholar appearing to explain the intricacies of the world.
If anything, the game started at the airport.
The game begins with the protagonist returning to Korea from America. But no matter where I looked, it was red. Red, red, and more red. Everywhere, just an ocean of red.
“Is this how the game starts?”
I raised my hand to open the status window to grasp the situation.
“Status window… huh?”
The hand meant to pause the game mid-motion froze mid-air.
Fingers as delicate as the phrase “slender jade fingers” suggests—completely unblemished, white like fresh snow. They were definitely not my avatar’s hands from the game or my own rough real-life hands.
“Is this really my hand?”
I bent each finger according to my will, made a fist, and even gave the middle finger while keeping the others folded.
Apart from the difference in appearance, it was undoubtedly my hand.
“Could this be a DLC exclusive avatar?”
Though small and dainty like a young maiden’s, it felt strange but enjoyable, like receiving an expansion pack directly from the developers.
With the excitement of an early adopter unboxing a new product, I waited for the next event.
“…”
“……”
“…. It’s taking too long.”
I must’ve waited at least ten minutes.
Yet, no interface appeared to help create my character, nor did any NPC show up, and there wasn’t even a prologue event.
“Maybe I need to find a helper NPC?”
Perhaps I needed to search this vast red sea for someone, or escape this crimson ocean to progress the story.
“At least give me a direction marker!”
Deciding to leave a review about how the lack of quest markers makes logging out inconvenient, I began moving my body.
“Something feels off.”
Swimming through the magma was surprisingly fast.
But what was truly unsettling was how ‘realistic’ everything felt—it was almost surreal, far beyond what a VR device could simulate.
“We’re here.”
After ascending for several minutes, I noticed something darker than the previous crimson sea. Instinctively, I realized that was the surface.
“Phew-ha.”
Breaking through to the surface, I took a deep breath. The air was slightly warm, but breathing wasn’t much of an issue—
“…”
Bubbles formed. No, it wasn’t bubbles—it was heat-infused flames boiling around me. Where had I seen this before? Oh right, disaster movies featuring volcanic eruptions.
“Aaaaah!”
Splashing wildly, I scrambled to find solid ground.
Shouldn’t I already be dead if I was in magma? Yet my body remained perfectly fine.
Thankfully, I quickly found land—a small patch of hardened rock greeted me.
“Haa, haa.”
Breathing heavily, the tension in my chest began to ease. Suddenly, I felt incredibly foolish.
“Of course. If I survived that, there’s no way I’d die now.”
From visual graphics to tactile sensations, they had recreated the texture of magma impeccably.
If they went this far with VR simulation, elderly players might suffer heart attacks.
“Is this really a game…?”
Touching my throat, I let out a sound.
“Eh? Eeeh?”
The voice that emerged after escaping the magma wasn’t mine but sounded eerily similar to the female character’s voice I’d heard countless times during gameplay.
“A-aaah—Ice Americano!”
Clearly my own volition, yet it wasn’t the voice I knew.
“…!!”
Ah, surely not. That can’t be right. The protagonist was supposed to be fixed, wasn’t he?
“Face.”
Using my fingers, I poked and prodded my face. Instead of neglected, rough skin, it was smooth like a newborn baby’s.
Not mannequin-like, but distinctly shaped as ‘some entity.’
“Surely not.”
And when I glanced down—
“!!”
My eyes instinctively darted to two prominent mounds. Could this really be my avatar?
“…Hmm.”
This was irresistible. Not perverted, merely a necessary check.
Mol-kang.
Even with my eyes closed, the soft sensation made my face burn. Clearly, this ‘avatar’ had a distinctly feminine form.
“It’s probably just an avatar. Yeah. An avatar. Surely not the real ‘thing,’ right?”
Casually shaking my head, I caught a glimpse of blue in my vision.
Shakily raising my hand, I picked up the blue object and held it in front of me.
“It’s hair.”
A color akin to engulfing blue flames—not black, at least.
Staring blankly, a burst of azure flames appeared before me.
“Kyik?”
Startled, I fell backward on my butt, but the flames before me were clearly ‘mine.’
“Eh, surely not.”
The sensation of ‘mana’ flowing out of my body. A feeling I’d experienced many times as the protagonist, now manifesting reality, creating a clear and azure flame before my eyes.
Cang-yeom (Blue Flame). A purifying fire that burns corrupted mana.
And the one who wields Cang-yeom exists only as one in this world.
“Could it be me?”
Blazing Phoenix.
* * *
Terra’s Death Dinassus.
This game, set against the backdrop of magic power, monsters, and special abilities, tells the story of the protagonist defeating the world-conquering organization known as Dark Legion.
Dark Legion (Dark Alliance).
An evil group with a name that stirs the senses, manipulating beasts and monstrous humans to conquer Earth.
And Blazing Phoenix is one of the seven executives of this group, titled the strongest among them.
Ranked fourth in combat power officially within the game.
Considering the awakened protagonist ranks first, the true final boss second, and the fake final boss third, Phoenix can genuinely be called the strongest in the story.
“The problem is that I’m a subordinate of the final boss.”
One destined to have their brain pickled and die after Earth’s conquest.
I’ve heard of betrayal after success, but this is the fate of the seven executives led by Phoenix.
“Can I defeat her alone?”
Impossible. While Phoenix’s combat power is superior, the leader of Dark Legion, the Fake Final Boss ranked third, has brainwashed the executives.
“They’re not even evil organization members.”
Spirits.
The fake final boss, Seongju (Star Master), invaded and conquered Terra, another world, brainwashing its spirits to become his subordinates—this marked the beginning of Dark Legion.
“In other words, I’ve been brainwashed.”
Unaware that their original world was destroyed by Seongju, they serve him faithfully, destroying other worlds as his vanguard.
And they end up as tragic figures slated to be boiled alive after destroying Earth.
“Reincarnation Record, huh…”
Too much, isn’t it? Though I’m grateful for being reincarnated into the body of the strongest character, being reincarnated as an antagonist is quite cruel.
“Fortunately, Seongju isn’t active right now.”
Had Seongju been present on Earth, I might have seriously hidden my identity and worked towards Earth’s destruction under him.
“But luckily, he fled after getting beaten up by Earthlings.”
Thanks, Earthlings! As a transplanted extraterrestrial, I’m infinitely grateful to those who provided me with a path forward.
“If I want to survive without being crushed by Seongju…”
I need to find him.
The Protagonist.
“But Phoenix gets killed by the protagonist, doesn’t she?”
“AAAAH!”
I screamed. The magma in the cave rippled from the sound, but Phoenix’s body remained unharmed.
“What should I do?”
The reason Phoenix has never been romanced as a heroine is simple.
“Phoenix dies and gives her power to the protagonist, thus starting the story’s conclusion.”
Six executives fall one by one to the protagonist, and finally, Phoenix emerges, defeating the protagonist’s allies one by one.
In the end, battling the protagonist one-on-one, she reaches victory’s edge, but the brainwashing wears off due to the battle’s aftermath.
“Going berserk and filled with self-loathing, she gives her power to the protagonist and vanishes.”
A character destined to die.
A character whose death is essential for the story to progress—an ultimately tragic heroine who cannot be romanced, no matter how much you try.
That’s me now.
“Phew.”
A sigh escaped me involuntarily.
“There’s still a way out.”
It’s not impossible to survive. Instead of groveling at Seongju’s feet or fading away as the protagonist’s power, there’s a way to live fully as ‘Blazing Phoenix.’
“I’ve done the romancing.”
Phoenix Route.
That’s the only way to survive.
“I can’t die like Phoenix. I can’t kill Phoenix.”
I already know this isn’t just a hyper-realistic VR game.
At minimum, my body might be imprisoned somewhere, my mind trapped in the game, or worst-case scenario, I’ve been reincarnated into another world.
“Phew.”
This world is reality, and I am Blazing Phoenix.
After regaining consciousness and working my brain nonstop, I couldn’t deny the conclusion: I am now Blazing Phoenix.
“Creating a game using aliens, turns out the GMs are alien-like bastards…”
They’re the only culprits.
After clearing the game, they lured me with an expansion pack message, and upon executing it, I instantly became Blazing Phoenix.
Maybe I’m in a Truman Show-like situation.
Trapped as a cleared game character, streamed by the developers for global gamers’ entertainment—a secret camera prank.
“Haha, ha.”
With a dry laugh, I stood up. Whatever the situation, there’s only one thing to do.
“Convince the protagonist to become allies. Absolutely avoid becoming a romance target!”
No matter how much of a heroine I may become, I refuse to be the one lying beneath a man.
“Let’s go out first.”
Since realizing I am ‘Blazing Phoenix,’ I’ve somewhat grasped how to use my powers.
Whoosh.
Azure flames spread into wings behind me. Like Icarus escaping his prison and soaring above the sea, I gazed upward and took a deep breath.
“Ah, didn’t Icarus fall into the sea and die?”
“…Then, though embarrassing, I’ll correct myself to an angel.”
Calling Phoenix an angel isn’t entirely wrong; Japanese communities jokingly refer to her as ‘Phoenixnyan Maji Tenshi (PMT).’
“If they knew the truth, would they still say that?”
I chuckled. Now, Phoenix is me, and finding the original is impossible.
“Phew.”
Taking a long breath, I moved toward the center where magma cascaded like a waterfall.
The sole downward-flowing magma stream amidst the cave’s river-like flows—the only passage leading to the surface in this vast underground space.
“…”
Approaching the magma again made me hesitate despite endless simulations in my mind. I had no sense of how far I needed to ascend.
“…It’ll work somehow.”
It can’t be Mount Everest. Lightly tapping my cheek, I reached into the flames. Warm like soaking in a hot spring, but staying here isn’t an option.
“Let’s go.”
Resolutely muttering to myself, I flapped my wings strongly and soared upward.
* * *
<April 1, 2020, 4:00 AM, Hawaiian Volcano Observatory>
A researcher in a white coat sat slumped in his chair, arms crossed, dozing off. He hadn’t showered properly in days, his unkempt beard and weary appearance evident.
“…Zzzz.”
Dark circles under his eyes highlighted his exhaustion.
“…Sniff. I’m asleep.”
He’d been pulling all-nighters for three days straight, including tonight’s shift. Despite drinking coffee thirty minutes ago, sleep claimed him once more. Monitoring a dormant volcano showing no activity was exhausting.
“Why keep checking if it won’t erupt anyway…”
Maxwell reached for his remaining coffee.
Drrrrr!
“Huh?”
Did I set my phone to vibrate? Startled by the unexpectedly strong vibration, Maxwell grabbed his cup.
“What is it!”
The observation gauge began to move violently, though subtly at first.
A massive tremor originating deep underground. What had been minor seismic waves grew stronger.
Clang!
A glass bottle on the shelf fell to the floor.
“Damn.”
Despite precautions to prevent it from falling, Maxwell turned pale checking the temperature monitoring program.
“It’s going to explode?”
Temperatures were rising underground. Especially at the mountain peak’s core, the temperature surged drastically.
KABOOOM!
A colossal explosion roared outside the window, illuminating the sky in red. Maxwell triggered the emergency alarm, staring dumbfounded at the erupting mountain peak.
“…Damn.”
Red magma erupted through the rocky mountain in a tremendous blast. Amidst the eruption, a figure with azure wings flapping was visible.
“Human?”
Though distant and hard to see with the naked eye, the shape was unmistakably human. The winged figure resembled his favorite hero ‘Brain God,’ albeit different—
“Damn! Not the time for this!”
Maxwell hastily gathered his belongings.
The previously dormant volcano’s sudden eruption might trigger other dormant volcanoes, and the supposedly safe research station could be affected by flying debris.
“Helicopter…!”
Requesting an emergency helicopter was too late. The outside would likely be choked with volcanic ash, obstructing visibility—
“…What?”
The sky was crystal clear, stars visible, making the volcanic eruption seem almost unreal.
“What the—”
Witnessing such an unprecedented natural anomaly in nearly twenty years as a researcher left Maxwell bewildered until he snapped back and turned his gaze to the mountain peak.
“Gone?”
The figure with azure wings hovering moments ago was nowhere to be seen. Maxwell, feeling as if haunted, collapsed onto the floor in shock.
“Haha, ha.”
Just as the initial flow suggested, the earthquake subsided, and the magma flow decreased.
Volcanic activity ceased. Watching the rescue helicopter approach the helipad from afar, Maxwell relaxed and lost consciousness.
